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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: pop · lean · ball · tube · content · wind · capital · perch

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. capital — money
  4. lean — to bend
  5. tube — the underground
  6. pop — music
  7. content — happy
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. wind — moving air
  10. pop — soda
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. capital — a city
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. pop — to visit
  16. wind — moving air
  17. ball — a great time
  18. content — the amount
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. perch — the fish
  21. ball — a dance
  22. lean — thin
  23. tube — a container
  24. ball — a round shape

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com